


Persephone to Hades

by LadyKnightSkye



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergent - Force Awakens, Dark Rey, Dark is Not Always Evil, F/M, Force Dyad, Force Ghosts, Idiots in Love, Light is not always Good, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:53:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22312066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyKnightSkye/pseuds/LadyKnightSkye
Summary: Persephone to HadesYou are the kindest thingthat ever happened to me,even if that is not how our tale is told.When everyone else told me I wasdestined to be a forgotten nymphthat nurtured flowers and turned meadows gold,you saw that the ichor that resides in medemanded its own throne.You showed mehow a love like ours can turneven the darkest, coldest realminto the happiest of homes.- Nikita Gill~~~Starving and alone, Rey has almost no choice but to trade BB-8 for the staggering amount of portions that Unkar Plutt offers. But this choice brings a monster to her door, and he offers her security and belonging on a silver platter. Together, they will shake the foundations of the galaxy.It's time for the past to die. For them to kill it if they have to.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 21
Kudos: 53





	1. For Want of A Nail

[ ](https://imgur.com/0B3RSWs)

Maybe this would have gone differently if Rey had actually eaten something in the past three days. Maybe she would have listened to the inner voice that always led her away from the anger and the hatred. Maybe she would have kept the little droid, come what may. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

But she hadn’t eaten in three days, and sixty portions, hoarded and rationed carefully, would last her at least a month. Or, they could be used to help stop the gap when she couldn’t find anything good. The things were already years old, maybe she could stretch these out to last her another year, for the in-between times when she couldn’t find anything that Unkar Plutt deemed worthy of payment. She was desperate, her ribs sticking out from beneath her skin like a mummified skeleton she’d once come across, her hair dull, and her skin beginning to hang slack. 

“Deal,” she breathed, refusing to look at the droid. Instead, she gathered up her portions, shooting deadly looks at the other scavengers staring at her. Thankfully, none of them tried to take what was hers. She made it back to her speeder quickly enough, and loaded up her haul. She tried not to think about the sweet little droid she was leaving behind. She tried to not think about anything. She simply existed as she drove across the desert sands to her home.

Once there she made sure to hide the portions well. She had an old strongbox, so she piled them inside of it, and then chose a spot inside the AT-AT to dig out. She’d tried once, years ago, to get rid of all the sand inside of her home, but after coming across a skeleton buried there, she’d backfilled everything and decided to never do that again. It had taken awhile, but she was no longer bothered about the fact that she slept on top of graves. She went into one of the nooks that was farthest away from where she’d found that old skeleton, and dug out a big enough hole to hold the box. She kept out only two portions - deciding that she could over eat this one time - and covered the rest over in sand.

She never heard the distinctive screaming of TIEs roaring through the sky.

* * *

Kylo Ren stalked through the settlement. It was a pitiful place, full of pitiful people. Scavengers and junk traders all, and apparently, their leader was a pink blob of flesh called Unkar Plutt. “You’re sure? He’s the one with the droid?”

“Yes sir,” the Stormtrooper said. He pointed to the man, who was currently screaming at the top of his lungs from the center of town. 

“You can’t do this!” he roared as two other Stormtroopers wrestled with the droid. 

“We can!” Kylo thundered, causing everything - even the droid - to fall silent. “And we will. If you want to get out of this alive, tell me where you found the droid.”

Unkar Plutt’s beady eyes slid left and right. “I didn’t. One of the scavenger girls did.”

Kylo froze, a sense of excitement rising. “What. Girl?”

Plutt’s eyes widened, and he put up his hands. “Rey! Little sand rat named Rey. She lives in an old AT-AT out in the waste!”

“ _Rey_.” Kylo turned to his escorts. “Search the settlement for any Resistance sympathizers.”

He turned, and said, “I’m going for the girl.” They had traveled down to the surface in separate TIEs, so he jumped back into his personal one. It did not take long to find a down AT-AT out in the desert sands, and he set down not far away. The trek to the old walker was short, but the entire time he vibrated with excitement. For some reason, his instincts were screaming at him to find _this girl_ and to see if it was _her_. The girl from his visions. 

As he approached, he could tell that someone inhabited the structure, because she sat right out in front. When she’d spied him coming over the dunes, she stood, and grabbed for a staff that looked like it was made of an old pipe. Her eyes were wide, terrified, but he became more and more sure as he approached - it was her.

He stopped a few feet from her, and held up his hands at his sides. “I mean you no harm.”

She glanced around. “Who are you?” her voice was lyrical and low. 

“I am Kylo Ren,” he answered, deciding to play nice. “And you are?”

She eyed him warily, but she apparently decided to answer. “Rey. My name’s Rey.”

“ _Rey_ ,” he breathed. “You found a droid, and traded it to Unkar Plutt earlier today. I need to know more about it.”

She bit her lip, and her staff finally went down. “What do you need to know?”

He took a step closer, stalking to her right. “Where did you find it?”

She gestured with her chin to a dune close by. “Over there. He was being attacked by other scavengers. I . . . saved him. He was nice company, and I’m all by myself . . .” She looked down, apparently ashamed at what she’d done. “I didn’t want to trade him, but I was just . . . so hungry.”

Maybe it was the way she looked, a lonely figure silhouetted against the AT-AT in the fading light. Maybe it was because he still had compassion buried deep in his heart. Maybe it was because she was a beautiful lonely girl, and he was a lonely man. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

He held out his hand to her. “Come with me, and I will make sure you never go hungry and never be lonely again.”


	2. Kira

[ ](https://imgur.com/hjtLwvZ)

Rey stared at the black gloved hand while biting her lip. “I can’t,” she whispered. “I . . . I can’t leave Jakku.”

“Why?” the black-clad monster growled. She knew he was a man, intimidating and gruff, but he’d shown her a curious respect that she was loath to lose. 

“My . . . parents. They’re going to come back for me,” she told him boldly, but deep, deep inside, she knew the truth. It was an ugly, twisted thing that she refused to entertain, refused to look at, but the deep scarring truth always lurked just beneath her surface thoughts ready to leap out in the middle of the lonely nights. 

His bark of laughter was short and harsh. He took another step forward, his hand still outstretched. “I know something of being abandoned. How long have you been waiting?”

She glared at him. “Since I was a child,” she finally muttered.

“And they still haven’t returned?” he answered. He took another step, and now he stood just before her, looking down on her. He was tall, and broad, and she felt a thrill zip down her spine. However, she couldn’t tell if it was fear or something else. “You and I both know that they’re not coming back.”

The feeling in the air changed, and though she couldn’t see his face, she sensed his sympathy shifting. She had no idea how, but she knew. “Mine never did,” he murmured softly. He reached down and touched one of her clenched fists. 

Both of them gasped. It was like an electric shock coursed through them both, and suddenly Rey felt like an abyss had opened up at her feet. One wrong move and she’d fall into it and never return. “You’re Force sensitive,” he breathed. “You are . . . _perfect_.”

Rey blinked. “No one’s ever called me that before,” she whispered. And indeed, no one had. Whomp rat, gutter snipe, piece of trash, those she’d been called a plenty. No one had ever spoken of her like she was something too precious to name, something soft and delicate. She felt a small blush grace her cheeks. 

“No one has ever seen you like I do,” Kylo Ren replied. “I see all of you, and it’s more beautiful than the sunrise.”

She blushed hard. She had no idea what he looked like, what species he was, or anything, but already he’d charmed her far more than any of the rough men of Niima or the other outposts had ever done. She’d been hit on before, flattered and wheedled. Some of them had even used the promise of food and companionship to try to lure her to their beds, but there was something about him that felt . . . genuine. He did not want her because she was a convenient warm body, he wanted her because she meant something. 

She meant something.

Rey licked her lips. “What do you want from me?” It was a whispered plea torn from her soul. He was right. Her parents were not coming back. They were gone and never going to come back. They had left her alone. Abandoned her like trash.

“Let me be your teacher,” he murmured seductively. “Let me show you the ways of the Force.”

“And what do you want in return?” she asked. 

“Your loyalty will be enough for now,” Kylo Ren answered. He offered her his hand once again.

This time, she took it.

* * *

He sat her in the second seat of the TIE fighter, after allowing her a moment to gather up her meager possessions. He’d glanced around her hovel, and felt anger burn low in his gut. She had basic furniture cobbled together, but her bed was a nest of linen scraps she’d probably found in one of the numerous Star Destroyers that littered the surface of Jakku, and a wall full of scratch marks told the story of her long wait. A withered flower sat on her table, and the detritus of a past war filled her home where her meager belongings didn’t. Or perhaps she considered them her things. He didn’t ask.

He seated himself, but felt her curiosity. “I’ve never been in a working TIE before,” she murmured. 

Behind his mask, he felt his lips perk up. “Would you like to learn to fly it?”

“Yes,” she breathed. “I’d love to.”

He chuckled. Her innocent enthusiasm was breathtaking. “Another time. Now, we must return to the _Finalizer_.”

“Of course,” she replied. 

The flight back to the ship was uneventful. The Stormtroopers were transporting the droid, and the girl was in his possession. For the time being all was right with the world. When they arrived, he made his report to Hux. “I have the droid.”

“BB-8!” Rey cried. The little droid rolled excitedly away from his escorts, and made a beeline right for her. She knelt and hugged the little creature. “I’m so sorry!”

It beeped an acknowledgement. _It's alright. I know. You humans cannot last without food._

She gave the droid a watery smile. “I’m still so sorry.” She looked up to Kylo. “Why do you need the droid?”

“It has a map that we need.” Kylo nodded to the droid. 

_No I don’t_. BB-8 beeped. _Dropped it._ The droid whirred unhappily. _On accident._

Kylo sighed. “Where?”

_No idea._

Kylo took a deep breath, his chest expanding and his fists clenching. Nearby Stormtroopers stepped away, their body language screaming their discomfort. Even several nearby droids stopped what they were doing to scuttle away, and BB-8 seemed to cringe in on itself. However, before he could explode, he glanced down at her, and his shoulders fell. His anger drained away, where once it would have flashed out of control. He chose not to dwell on why. “Of course the droid dropped the very important map. Of course.”

“He didn’t mean to!” Rey piped up. She patted BB-8’s head. “I . . . I might have seen it. Last night. I might remember it.”

Kylo stared at her. “Open your mind to me.”

“Oh, what -“ He dived in before she could finish her thought. Unlike his earlier attempt on Dameron, this was completely different. Her mind was an open book, and as he felt through it, he saw the information she was offering, but he also saw more. What he didn’t expect was her being able to do it back.

“Your name isn’t Kylo,” she murmured. “It’s-“

“Don’t,” he snarled without thought. 

She stared at him wide eyed, but then cast her eyes down. Then she licked her lips. “You left it behind, when they left you behind . . . .”

“Yes.”

She looked up to him. “Can I keep BB-8?”

Kylo found himself sighing. “The droid is yours. Now come, we must take you to medical.”

* * *

“Well?” he asked a half an hour later after one of the med bay doctors had taken a look at Rey. 

Dr. Tilla Laurie sighed. She was a trim woman in her mid forties, with platinum blonde hair and a no-nonsense attitude that made her one of the few human physicians that Kylo could stand. “Kira’s very fit, but bordering on malnourished. She’s way too thin, and needs to gain at least twenty pounds. I’d advise rest, a bland but calorie rich diet for a few days, and once her digestive system is used to regular meals again, you can start introducing variety.”

He nodded, and looked to where Rey was getting a vaccine. She winced, but seemed to have no fear of needles. “Kira?”

“That’s the name she gave me,” Dr. Laurie murmured with a cocked brow.

Once Rey was done, she joined the two in the observation room. Dr. Laurie repeated her instructions to her, and the young woman nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

Dr. Laurie nodded to them and left. Kylo looked down to her. “Kira?”

“I wanted a new name too,” she replied. “Rey . . . Rey is gone.”

He nodded, understanding more than she could know. “Ready to explore your new home, my lady Kira?”

She nodded, and shivered. He cocked his head at her. “It’s cold,” she replied to his unvoiced question.

He reached up and unhooked his cowl. He took the length of black fabric, and wrapped it around her shoulders, and raised the hood over her head. She blushed and smiled, and BB-8 chirped. “Do I look good, Beebee?” she asked with a smile.

The droid beeped in agreement.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

He nodded, and offered her his arm. She took it, and Kylo led her out to survey her new kingdom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your patience! I got sick the last couple of weeks, so this took a bit longer than I anticipated to get up. 
> 
> Now with added mood boards. :) I saw a lot of other people doing them, so I decided that I wanted to jump on this particular bandwagon ~~five years late like aways.~~

**Author's Note:**

> Should I be starting another long fic? No. Am I because the prompt was beautiful? Yes. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy it!


End file.
